CHAPTER 47 #3
So I don’t. My thoughts drift elsewhere. Back to RK Estate. To the gunfire I heard before leaving. To Raghav. Suddenly, the door bursts open, and I whirl around to see Samarjeet storming inside, alive. The relief hits me, but then I remember the gunfire.
I march straight towards him and grab his shirt. “What the hell did you do?”
His expression hardens.
“You told me you wanted your mother back.” I shove him hard. “You told me you wanted Siya out of Raghav’s life. But when I took your mother out of RK Estate, that place looked like a damn war zone.” My grip tightens on his collar. “Tell me Raghav is okay.”
And for the first time, I realise I don’t care about Samarjeet’s plan or the revenge he came here for anymore. I only care about one thing. Raghav.
Samarjeet’s eyes darken. He grabs my wrists and throws me away from him. I stumble backwards and crash beside Aunty’s chair, barely catching myself before hitting the floor.
“Enough!” His roar fills the room. “I don’t want to hear his name again.”
“You’ll have to.” I slowly push myself upright, glaring at him.
“You’ll have to hear it because I helped you only because you wanted Siya away from Raghav, and so did I.
But if I had known this was never about Siya...
” I shake my head in disbelief, the truth finally hitting me.
“If I had known you were coming for Raghav’s life too… I would’ve never helped you.”
Samarjeet stares at me, then he lets out a dark laugh.
“You still don’t understand, do you, Kriti?
” he shouts. “Raghav was always going to die.” My heart drops.
“And you’re right. I didn’t come here only for Siya or my mother.
No. I don’t give a damn whether either of them lives or dies.
I came back for what Raghav took from me back in Cape Town.
My dignity. My honour. My place in the underworld.
” His voice rises with every word. “If he thinks he can just show up after years and become the hero in the underworld again, he’s wrong. I won’t let him win. Ever.”
The hatred in his eyes sends a chill through me.
For a moment, I don’t recognise the man standing before me.
Samarjeet and I go way back, to when I was studying winemaking in France.
That’s where we met first and fell in love.
Or at least, that’s what we thought. But I didn’t know at first that he was a son of a mafia kingpin and was about to inherit an empire built on blood and violence.
And he’d also cheated on me too many times.
So, I left him. He didn’t care either. Our two-year affair ended more amicably than I thought it would.
I moved on, returned to my hometown, and joined RK Estate as its sommelier.
And then Raghav came into my life. Now, after years of obsessing over him, I found out that Raghav too was from the same world…
the underworld. I know I shouldn’t want him as I left Samarjeet for that very reason.
But it’s Raghav. He’s different, and I don’t want to lose him.
A few weeks ago, Samarjeet contacted me and claimed that Raghav, the man I worked for, had forcefully married his sister, Siya, and taken her away.
He said all he wanted was to rescue Siya and their mother from Raghav’s grasp and bring them home.
I wanted Siya away from Raghav too, so I agreed to help him.
But after seeing the massacre back at RK Estate tonight, I’m beginning to realise that I’ve made a big mistake.
Samarjeet never told me there would be a war and that he intended to kill Raghav.
And if Raghav finds out that I’m the one who helped Samarjeet get inside his estate and take Rukmini Aunty... he’ll come after me too.
Just then, Samarjeet strides across the room towards his mother.
Aunty is still tied to the chair, her wrists bound tightly behind her back.
The ropes have already left angry red marks across her skin, showing just how hard she has struggled against them.
He stops in front of her and slowly bends down until he’s almost at eye level with her.
“I shot Siya,” he says, almost proudly.
My heartbeat stops. Aunty looks horrified as she begins struggling harder to free herself, all the while glaring at her son.
He lets out a sinister laugh. “I’m sure she’s dead by now.”
A muffled cry breaks through the gag covering her mouth as she fights violently against her restraints. Rage burns in her eyes, and Samarjeet finally reaches forward and yanks the gag away.
The moment it comes off, her scream shakes the room. “You killed her?” Tears instantly flood her eyes, but there is more fury in them than grief. “You killed your own father, and now you’ve killed your sister? How could you destroy your own family?”
Samarjeet rolls his eyes. But Aunty isn’t done. “I regret giving birth to you,” she snaps.
Something shifts in Samarjeet’s expression.
“The day you were born, I thanked God for giving me a son.” Tears stream down her cheeks as her voice cracks. “Today, I wish he had never answered that prayer.”
Samarjeet stiffens for a second. “You should be careful what you say, Mom.” His voice drops as he leans closer. “Because one day… I might stop remembering that you’re my mother.”
A shiver runs down my spine, but Aunty doesn’t flinch. She lifts her chin and looks straight into his eyes.
“You are a monster.”
The hatred in Samarjeet’s eyes turns murderous. For a second, I genuinely think he’s going to kill her.
“Your curses mean nothing to me,” he snarls. “But if you want to stay alive, stop talking. If you push me any further, it won’t take much for me to kill you too.”
The words should have intimidated her, but she meets his gaze head-on despite the ropes binding her to the chair. The disappointment in her eyes is somehow worse than hatred.
Then her gaze shifts to me. My stomach tightens instantly. “And you...” she snaps. “Do you seriously think any of this is going to get you what you want?” I freeze. “Do you think helping him will somehow give you my daughter’s place in Raghav’s life? You still don’t know him, do you?”
My throat goes dry.
“He isn’t going to look at you. And he certainly isn’t going to spare you once he finds out what you’ve done.” Aunty’s eyes glisten with tears. “You have absolutely no idea how far Raghav can go for his family.”
Then she slowly turns back to Samarjeet, directing her anger to him.
“And you... just pray Siya is alive, Samarjeet. Pray that nothing happens to her. Because if she’s not, then Raghav will come for you.
” Her eyes shine with tears, but there’s no fear in them.
“You have already committed sins that no mother should ever have to bear. Mark my words, you won’t make it out of Shivtara Valley.
Raghav will come for you. I know my son. ”
The words hit their mark.
“My son?” Samarjeet repeats, his face twisting with anger. “So he’s your son now?” He pulls away angrily. “Then who the f*ck am I?”
Aunty doesn’t hesitate to reply. “The day you killed Shamsher, you stopped being my son. You don’t deserve to be called anyone’s son.” She stares directly into his eyes. “You’re not human anymore. You are a monster, Samarjeet. A devil.”
Samarjeet is still glaring at her, when a distant gunshot suddenly cracks through the silence outside. Everyone freezes as the gunshots start getting closer. My heart starts hammering. Samarjeet’s head snaps towards the door. He knows exactly what those gunshots mean. They found us.
Aunty’s eyes shine triumphantly. “I told you. My son is here. This is your end, Samarjeet.”
Another explosion tears through the night outside, and the entire house seems to vibrate. Suddenly, I don’t feel nearly as safe inside this hideout anymore. Pure fury takes over Samarjeet’s face.
“Not my end.” He whirls back towards his mother. “It will be his.”
Both of us stare at him as he moves towards the window, listening to the gunfire raging outside. “Let him come.”
Another explosion echoes through the valley, closer this time. His fists tighten.
“Tonight...” He turns back towards us with murder in his eyes. “...Raghav dies.”